Bolton Wanderers boss Neil Lennon admires Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool template

Back when Lennon was cutting his teeth in coaching he sought out the help of his fellow Northern Irishman, then embarking on an ill-fated spell at the helm of Reading.

What the Whites boss learned down in Berkshire helped shape his methods at Celtic and that same box of tricks has helped him make a successful start at the Macron Stadium too.

“I'm not surprised how well he's done,” Lennon said of his opposite number Rodgers. “He was so methodical in his preparation, but his training sessions were brilliant.

“I still use some of them now, but don't tell him, I don't know if he has the copyright on them!

“I had a couple of days with him and I really enjoyed it. He talked about his coaching days at Chelsea and about his own ideas on the game.

“It didn't go well for him at Reading. But Swansea was a great success and he's gone on to do brilliant things at Liverpool.”

After missing out on the Premier League title last season, Rodgers has entered choppier waters this time around as his side struggle to adapt to life without Luis Suarez to Barcelona.

But considering the mess left behind by ownership and manager changes in recent years at Anfield, Lennon reckons the current situation at Liverpool is better than it has been for some time.

“What he did last season was give the supporters their belief back, not just with results, but in the style of football as well,” he said.

“There's been a bit of transition for him this year, obviously the loss of Suarez was huge, but he has found another way of playing.

“They were breathtaking on Tuesday. Some of the football was out of this world. I'm so pleased for him, a fellow countryman and I'm pleased he is doing so well at a club where the pressure is huge and the expectation levels are huge.”

Back home in Northern Ireland there has been special interest in two of the country’s favourite footballing sons crossing swords in the cup.

Billed as Lennon’s Armagh v Rodgers’ Antrim, in reference to their respective birthplaces, every kick on Saturday evening will be closely scrutinised.

“It will be nice for people back home I hope they can take a bit of pride in what we're both doing. Football is huge there."

“If it was a Gaelic match, it would be no contest.

“It will be the first time coming up against Brendan. We did have a pre-season game in Dublin a couple of years ago, but that doesn't count.

“He's travelled here, there and everywhere to learn and he's found his own niche in the game.

“He's putting his own stamp on the game and the style of football is very good to watch. I'm sure the Liverpool fans are enjoying it at the moment.”

Lennon has played the underdog before, with his Celtic side famously overcoming Barcelona in the Champions League, and will be drawing on all his experience as he looks to upset Liverpool tomorrow evening.

But the major ramification of a positive result – a victory or a draw to force a replay – will be financial.

With TV and prize money factored in, the Anfield game is worth £500,000 which was not budgeted for at the start of the season, and progression into round five would be even more lucrative.

The feel-good factor a result against the Reds would be priceless, however, and that is why Lennon is drawing on every resource he can.

“Financially this game will make a big difference, but whether we will be able to spend any of that in the transfer window remains to be seen,” he said.

“Going forward it will help no end. You never know where a cup run will take you.

“We will set out a team to compete, we're not going there for the day out.

“We are under no illusions how difficult the game will be. But I have been in this situation before, Celtic against big teams. I'm hoping we can pass on that experience to the players.

"I think it is difficult to go toe to toe with these teams if you want to play football because they will wear you down and pick you off.

“We have to find a way to curtail them and make sure we create our own chances.”